


Past Our Dancing Days

by POYOInformation



Category: BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: Character Study, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Flashbacks, Friends to Lovers, Personal Growth
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:27:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21912931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/POYOInformation/pseuds/POYOInformation
Summary: The more things change, the more they stay the same.  Then, why was it that much harder to look at her in the eyes?
Relationships: Seta Kaoru/Shirasagi Chisato
Comments: 5
Kudos: 38





	1. The Park

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, when Traces of Childhood dropped and I got hold of translations, I couldn't stop myself, especially since this is one of my favorite ships. I always wanted to do something that connected KaoChisa's relationship both in the past and present. And that's what I'll do here with a sort of unorthodox style, switching back and forth from childhood to present based on specific settings. Thankfully, now that I'm on winter break I have time to actually do this (and maybe finish that tomohima fic I barely started 9 months ago. Yeah—). Anyways, I wanted to tackle a character analysis and sort of show why I'm in love with their dynamic. Hopefully, you'll enjoy the ride.

The sun was coming up earlier and earlier with each coming day. Soon enough, Chisato might even be able to start walking Leon before school. The only problem was waking up early enough.

  
The afternoon was fine, though, especially since the sun shining behind her warmed the back of her neck. That alone was able to make the itch in her nose a bit more bearable.   
Thankfully, she wasn’t alone. 

  
Behind her, the fast, quick steps of a purple-haired little girl followed. Her hair barely went down to her neck, and her eyes had a careful yet enthusiastic energy within them.

  
“Chii-chan, slow down!”

  
That only won a cheerful giggle from the young Chisato instead of a lessening of her pace. With a firm grip of the only thing keeping Leon from running rampant around the park, the similarly short-haired blonde could only turn around and yell back.

  
“Sorry, Kao-chan, but you’re just going to have to speed up!”

  
Fortunately, the puppy felt the aura of the situation, situating himself at a tree and observing it, giving a chance for the young Kaoru to catch up. Just barely, though. Once the two were reunited, Kaoru hunched over on her knees to steady her heavy breath.

  
“Huah, he’s. . . fast, isn’t. . . he?”

“Hmm, it could also just be that you’re too slow.” Chisato was sympathetic towards the other’s pain though, gently patting the other’s back. “Do you want to sit down, though? We’ve been out for a while, and we could just give Leon a chance to burn off some of that extra energy.”

  
Kaoru looked at Chisato, then turned towards the puppy, who was now trying to climb up said tree. She looked back at her friend. “Is that okay? Won’t he just run away?” She looked back at Leon, running the fantasy through her mind. It would be so easy for him to run off and never come back. Then what would happen? Chisato would be so sad, and Kaoru wouldn’t know what to do.

  
“Don’t worry, Kao-chan, I know he won’t.” And just like that, the actress let go of the taut leash, letting Leon go to chase a nearby unfortunate squirrel. With Leon left alone, she made her way to a bench and heaved her light body to sit. She swiveled the small backpack she had on, taking out a small bottle of water. She patted the space next to her. “Come on, sit down and rest a little.”

  
Yet, as the puppy was free to do as he pleased, Kaoru couldn’t help but stare at Leon. She kept looking, her crimson eyes transfixed. It was almost if looking away would mean losing sight of Leon forever. Maybe she believed it too. “How...can you be so sure?” And a gasp. She didn’t want to say that! She didn’t want to give off the sense that she thought Chisato was lying. Oh no, was she going to get mad and start hat—

  
“I know. It’s because I’ve been with him long enough. Now come on, before you faint again.”   
If only her own arms were long enough to pull Kaoru towards the bench, but at least words were enough between the two. Small steps. One. Two. They were more like shuffles than steps, and even as Kaoru jumped and sat down on the bench next to Chisato, she still refused to stop keeping track of Leon. Her eyebrows even furrowed as she focused on what was now becoming a dot in the distance, and her frown only intensified her determination.

  
It made for such a humorous sight that Chisato couldn’t help but start giggling. Covering her mouth, the giggle only got stronger as Kaoru’s eyes narrowed further, and when it erupted to hints of laughter, the young Kaoru broke from her concentration and was visibly startled. “Eh?! Chii-chan, is there something wrong?”

  
That broke her.

  
Laughter spewed from her mouth, and she didn’t even bother hiding it. She backed up into the bench, and even her abdomen was starting to hurt. Goodness, she’s never laughed this hard before. Even when she was supposed to laugh in her roles, she had never done it as much as this. Poor Kaoru, though. She was left a stammered, flustered mess. What was she supposed to do, seeing her childhood friend suddenly erupt in unprecedented laughter with no explanation? 

All she could do was to wave her hands and fruitlessly try to calm the other down.

Eventually though, Chisato did calm down, taking a moment to finally get some oxygen in her lungs before Kaoru stammered out: “W-w-what was that for?!”

Chisato wiped a tear out of her eye. Don’t these only come out when you cry? Was she crying? “Nothing, haha-, I was just. Looking at how you were still looking back at Leon just made me think a little.”

  
She suddenly remembered why she had made Kaoru sit down in the first place, and quickly unscrewed the bottle cap and handed the bottle for her friend to drink. She took it slowly, but before taking the first sip of relief, the shy girl asked: “Think about what?”   
“Oh, just how you and Leon are really similar.”

  
Mid-sip, Kaoru choked a little. “You mean I’m a dog?!”

  
“No, no, that’s not what I meant! It’s just that when you asked me why I knew Leon wouldn’t leave me if I let go, right? Well, it’s kind of like with you. Even if we weren’t together all the time—”

  
“But you’ll always be with me, Chii-chan. You promised that!”

  
The young Chisato froze, but nodded. “I did, but I won’t be able to keep that forever. But Kao-chan, even if we were apart for some time, you wouldn’t leave me forever, would you?”

  
“No, no, of course not. I promise I won’t abandon you. Because if I do…” Within her hands, the plastic bottle got crushed a little under the pressure. “You have the right to hate me.”

  
“Oh, Kao-chan.”

  
A small slide over, and Chisato brought her arms around the other’s petite frame for an embrace. A brief one, but one that communicated the reassurance that words couldn’t quite say: _I could never hate you._

  
They parted, and Chisato took the moment to get her feet back on the ground. “You understand, though, right, Kao-chan?”

  
Kaoru nodded, resolutely. “Seriously though, Chii-chan. It’s a promise.”

  
And the only thing the young actress could nod, not knowing what that really meant from Kaoru nor who they would become. All she did know was that with a whistle, Leon would come sprinting back to her and pant before the blonde. Chisato knelt, smiling and petting him.

“Hey, Chii-chan.”

  
“Yes, Kao-chan?”

  
“Do you mind if...I try leading Leon on the way back home?”


	2. Where I learned how to laugh

The sun was coming up earlier and earlier with each coming day. Soon enough, Chisato might even be able to start walking Leon before school. The only problem was fitting it within her busy schedule.

  
Afternoons like this were rare nowadays in-between auditions, band practice, schoolwork, and rehearsals.Though today, it was rather nice outside, especially since the sun shining behind her warmed the back of her neck. That alone was able to make the itch in her nose a bit more bearable.

“Achoo!”  
  


Not bearable enough to stop her from sneezing, though. Was the pollen count in the air that high today.

  
Thankfully, she was alone.

  
With her line of work being revolved around other people, it was a nice change of pace to simply be outside on her own and breathe a little easier. She didn’t even have to wear a disguise this time (though, she hasn’t really worn one ever since Aya tried to ego-search with one on their way to the mall).

The tug in her hand brought her back though, momentarily. Ah yes, she wasn’t entirely alone. Leon had grown a lot in the past years, but he still had that energy within him. It wasn’t a restless energy, but enough that he wanted some time to run around. She knelt down and petted the golden retriever before nodding, a signal for Leon to go off into the field.  
  
“And so, she lets him go of her own accord once more. Though their parting be brief, it is still melancholy.”  
  
!!!  
  
The voice, the manner of language. She didn’t even have to turn around to know who was behind her, so she didn’t, instead slowly standing up and watching her beloved pet roam the freshly-mowed field.  
  
“A simple hello would have been enough.”  
  
“Fufu, it is what I felt was right to say. For what feels right is only what the heart wants.”  
  
“You can drop the act around me, you know. It doesn’t impress me like it does everyone else.”  
  
_But it’s not an act—_ The clearing of a throat filled the empty air. “Apologies, my dear Chisato. My purpose was not to offend your ears.”  
  
Chisato could only roll her eyes, but at least now, she turned around and looked upwards. Nowadays, Kaoru towered almost a head above Chisato. Sharper features, a slimmer figure, and hair tied up in a ponytail instead of stopping at her ears. The red eyes that were previously filled with nervous kindness was replaced by pretentious interest.

  
Objectively, Chisato could call Kaoru handsome. Attractive, even. Maybe then it would be easier to just be that more dismissive of her, but their history made that option impossible. 

“You wouldn’t bother me without a good reason, would you, Kaoru?”  
  
The bluntness of the comment caused Kaoru to visibly flinch, but she quickly recovered. “To do that would be betraying our bond. After all we’ve been through, no?” She paused a little as she looked at the dog in the distance. A light, nostalgic smile crept on the guitarist’s face, but it stopped when Kaoru spoke once more. “Did you want to sit down?”  
  
“I’m not tir—”  
  
“Come on, Chi-chan.”

She grasped Chisato’s wrist firmly, almost pulling her along. Chisato would have protested loudly if anyone treated her this way, including Kaoru herself, but with how abrupt it was and the serious tone in her voice, she quietly followed.  
  
Though Kaoru made it to the bench first, she waited for Kaoru to sit before sitting on the spot next to her. By now, Leon was out of sight, likely just in the hill past the right.

“What were you even doing outside at this time, Kaoru? I thought you had practices every Wednesday after school with Harohapi.”  
  
“Our wise little Kokoro likes to keep our schedules...flexible. They do say that routine dulls the mind.”  
  
_“‘Wise’ and ‘Kokoro’ aren’t two things that should ever be in the same sentence,”_ Chisato thought to herself.

“So admittedly, with a gap of free time, I could not help but have the need to clear my mind. Thus, I wandered here. It must be fate then that we’re here once again.” Kaoru let out a sigh, drifting backwards on her seat. “I still remember that first time that we were here. That’s when we first walked Leon, remember.”  
  
She raised an eyebrow, glancing at Kaoru from the side. “You still remember that?”  
  
“Of course I do. How could I ever forget that time? You never laugh like that anymore.”  
  
“Are you trying to start something with me today?”  
  
“If it makes you any better, recall what happened when I tried to lead with Leon.” Kaoru had to take a moment to look away.  
  
She had to dig through her memories, but the scene came flooding back, resulting in Chisato suppressing a fit of laughter. “O-oh my God, you barely held on, you almost let him drag you for an entire block!!”  
  
Kaoru turned back towards Chisato, a clear blush of embarrassment plastered on her princely face. “Y-you don’t need to say it out loud—!”  
  
“Back then, you were so adorable. And you know, even now, you still are, Kao-chan.”  
  
As if the red in Kaoru’s face couldn’t get any redder, it somehow did. “C-chii-chan.”  
  
But really, how much of those nicknames really remained within the two of them? Sure, the memory was sweet, and the Kaoru before her now did look like the same sweet, introverted Kao-chan from back then. But in Chisato’s eyes, that version of Kaoru was gone. It was stupid to think that she would stay the same after all that time, but she didn’t think that it would be so drastic. That Kaoru would. That she would…  
  
“A-anyways, Chisato, I actually did want to ask you something.”  
  
“Oh. What happened to ‘not betraying our bond’?” 

“. . .”  
  
“What do you want?”  
  
“I wished for assistance. You see, this role in this play is something that I’m...struggling to grasp. I’ve been trying for a while, but the soul of it is eluding me. Considering your experience, I was wondering if you could help me find it.” She knew it was a tall task to ask of Chisato. Intruding on her limited time and busy schedule? With even the few moments of no answer, Kaoru preemptively nodded. “It was too much to ask, I see. That is okay, though, and for—”  
  
“What are you saying, Kaoru?” Even if she had little time, there was something in her that couldn’t turn her back towards her childhood friend. “Of course I will. It probably won’t be this week, but I’ll let you know when I can.”  
  
Kaoru smiled brightly, and she even bowed a little to the adjacent bassist. “It means the world to me. Thank you, Chisato.” She stood up from her seat and stretched out a hand. “Now, shall I lead you and Leon back to your home?”  
  
The gesture was sweet, but Chisato didn’t take it. Instead, she laughed at the other’s face, shaking her head. “I want to spend a bit more time here, alone. Anyways, just send me some of the script and I’ll tell you when we can meet up.”  
  
It was a defiant action, a reminder for Kaoru to not get carried away. This park wasn’t their stage. This wasn’t a story of Romeo and Juliet, after all, and Chisato was the furthest away from being a Juliet to anyone, much less to Kaoru of all people.

Besides, the main reason she accepted the offer to help her wasn’t out of kindness. It was an ulterior one. Sure, she’s acted with Kaoru during that collaboration play, and sure, maybe she did even sneak her way into the plays that Haneoka had, but to see that different side to Kaoru was a chance to really decipher where did she go. Who she was.

Because Chisato knew that Kaoru just wasn’t the same.  
  
“Of course. Well, then, adieu, my star-crossed companion!” This time, her bow was full, letting her hair flow with her movements, and not long before, she made herself scarce. As Chisato looked at the other’s back, she sighed to herself.

_Even if we were apart for some time, you wouldn’t leave me forever, would you?_

Where did she go? Why was she so far away?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter already. What's up with me? I'm still trying to get a grip of Kaoru's flamboyancy and Shakespearean quips, so hopefully I can play around with that more in these later chapters. Thank you for all the kudos so far, and stay tuned.


End file.
